John Proctor: Hero or Stooge?

I'm not going to lie, when first reading about John Proctor, he came off as a stooge. The fact that we were immediately presented with his affair with Abigail gave me the impression that he was an insincere fool. As I read on though, I developed some respect for him because he didn't just go along with the rest of the town in their beliefs of witchery. It seems as though many people in the town go along with the whole witchery ideas out of fear (I'm sure that's new to a Puritan society..) that they will be prosecuted if they don't agree.


I like that Mr. Proctor isn't afraid to express his feelings to Reverend Parris. Yes, I know that the Reverend is supposed to be preaching from God, but John is smart enough to realize their may be more going on with the girls than the town's idea of witchery. He is much more open-minded than the rest of the town. 


John, I think, is actually a good person. Like I said before, he wasn't presented as a good person initially, but based off of some of the things he does (and doesn't do) I think it's fair to say he's a hero. He testifies for Mary, which was very kind of him since she is so young. Even though he cheated on his wife one time with Abigail, he has continuously refused to do it again, as hard as Abigail tries to seduce him. Everyone makes mistakes, and as long as John has learned from his I don't see what would make him a bad person in any sort. John should be classified as a hero, and I think that his personality and ideas will have an impact on Salem.

Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

Religion has played a great role in people's everyday lives for centuries, whether they are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, or a great variety of other religions. In a sermon delivered by Johnathan Edward, a Puritan preacher, "Sinners in the Hands of God", Edwards speaks of how God should be feared, and how terrible one will be treated by Him if they sin and how they will suffer in Hell. I believe that the Puritains only followed this religion out of fear that if they did not they would be damned to Hell. I mean, God is supposed to be this great being who inspires hope and helps those in need; not something anyone should be scared of! The Puritans tricked those of their own kind into being responsible and well-behaved in order to fulfill their destiny of reaching heaven when they die. In my opinion, using the fear tactic in order for people to do the right thing is manipulative and unjust. 


Edwards wants people to be afraid, but no one should be scared of life; if someone makes a mistake they should take it as a lesson and learn from their wrong-doings. Let's take the typical scenario of a big high school with a lot of gossip going around. If someone starts a rumor that gets out of control, God is supposed to forgive them for committing this sin instead of automatically thinking "Well, you blew it...have fun in Hell!", because let's face it, everyone gossips. But why would God punish someone so harshly for something no one will probably even remember in a few weeks?  I mean to be sent to Hell is a bit tough in my opinion. From what I believe in, I know that I should never be scared to live life, and God will always forgive me for whatever wrong-doings I perform as long as I can forgive myself first.

There Goes the Neighborhood

I have to say, I loved growing up in my neighborhood. Across the street from me there's a small park tucked away (as well as a big one only a few blocks down) that I would play in all the time. And whenever I'm in the mood to go see a movie, only two blocks away there's a theatre! If you turn the corner by the theatre, there's a whole strip of restaurants from all around the world, Italian, Thai, Japanese...it's all delicious! One of my favorite things about where I live, however, is that one of my best friends, Kara, lives only around the corner. We grew up together, practically as sisters. Over the years we have established our own friend circles and began seeing less and less of each other, though we talk all the time and pop by each others houses quite often. It's nice to know that when I'm locked out of the house I always have a place to go.....not like that happened yesterday or anything.....


There was another girl who lived on Kara's street our age, though I don't remember much about her. Her name was Samantha, and when we were about 4 or 5, she died in a strangling accident while playing around with the chords attached to the blinds. I was too young to understand what had happened, but I remember my parents and neighbors being upset.


On my street/the streets by me, the houses ranged from your average, nothing special house to beautiful big homes. Since the economy has tanked, suddenly all of the more expensive houses have gone up for sale, as well as some of the normal houses. There have been new projects and suddenly two lot mini mansions have been popping up, with new young, wealthy families moving in. Since I first began high school I've been able to take advantage of this opportunity, and I now have a few families I regularly babysit for. So in all, I'm happy that my neighborhood has been changing, but to me there's really nothing that different about it.

Introductions

I have been playing the flute forever. Well, maybe not forever, but it sure seems like it. I first picked up the flute at the age of five. Over the years, I've competed against flutists of all ages and levels. People always ask me if I'm going to play flute professionally when I'm older, but the funny thing is, I don't really have an answer. Although I do love the flute, over the summer I picked up the guitar and found I have a strong passion for it. I've been playing for hours almost everyday, trying to teach myself everything I can.

Every summer I go to sleepaway camp InTheMiddleOfNowhere, Michigan for a month. We take activities like sailing, archery, rock climbing, waterskiing, outdoor living skills, and much more. It's my favorite time of the year, and the people who go there are the ones I consider my best friends. We all know each other in a different way than we know our friends from home because we live together. Sadly, this year was my last year as a camper, but since all of my friends from there live in the North Shore, it's easy to take the Metra out to see them when we want to get together.

When people first meet me, they often ask me what my family origin is, because although my skin is not very dark, it has an olivey undertone and my hair is almost black. After I explain to someone that my family is from a variety of countries scattered throughout the Middle East, their response is usually something along the lines of "so you're not Mexian?!"